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In Wyoming, the village of Kingdom Come lies abandoned. Empty identical houses stand in an eerie row, with supper untouched on the table and cars in the garages. No people appear anywhere in the snow-covered village, except for a lone watcher who leaves his prints and peers in windows late at night but is never seen.
Boston medical examiner Maura Isles knows that her affair with a priest is coming to an end, so when a former college classmate asks her to join him, his daughter, and a couple of friends on a road trip, she says yes. They end up getting lost, but they find shelter in the strange little community of Kingdom Come. As they wait out the snowstorm, one member of the group is seriously injured, and Maura’s college friend disappears. Now she has no choice but to head out into the snow and find help.
When Boston homicide detective Jane Rizzoli learns that her friend Maura’s burned body has been recovered at a car crash site, she’s shocked and devastated. Weeks later, after Maura’s funeral, she gets a chilling phone call from Maura and heads back to Wyoming to find out what really happened to her. Her investigation leads her into dangerous territory, and it all points toward the cult village of Kingdom Come.
Though Ice Cold is the first Rizzoli and Isles book that I’ve read, the characters still felt familiar, and I was never confused or lost. Ms. Gerritsen skillfully writes her characters in such a way that, even if you’re a newcomer like me, you’ll know and love them without feeling like you’ve missed something from earlier books in the series. By the time you get to the end of this one, though, you’re going to want to read more.
Thrown into a harrowing situation that she has no experience with, Maura will both surprise you and tug at your heart with her strength, wit, resourcefulness, and determination to survive. She’s definitely one of the most memorable characters ever written, and I look forward to reading more about her in future novels.
I also love the way the story comes together in the end. Ms. Gerritsen takes a popular plot point and turns it into something fresh. You might think that you know how it’s going to end, but Ms. Gerritsen will surprise you.
Dark and edgy, Ice Cold will chill your blood much like the frigid Wyoming winter in which the story takes place. Once you start reading it, don’t be surprised if you look up to find most of your sleeping hours gone. It’s suspenseful and creepy, and it’s one of the best thrillers I’ve read all year.
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